1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the game of golf and equipment therefor, and more particularly to an improved apparatus for mechanically setting a golf ball onto a tee or other playing surface in preparation for hitting the ball with a golf club.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Past art devices structured to place golf balls onto tees, may be placed in two general categories. The first category generally consists of golf ball setting equipment positioned wholly or in part underground, and structured for setting the ball on a golf tee, followed by raising the tee and ball to above ground level for play. The second category generally consists of portable equipment which is positioned generally above ground. The above ground ball setting equipment is structured to lower a golf ball onto on a stationary tee or other playing surface, followed by retracting out of the way of the golfer's swing.
Examples of underground type golf ball setters are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,355,811 issued Oct. 26, 1982 to Louis E. Williams, Sr., and in U.S. Pat. No. 3,778,067 issued Dec. 11, 1973 to Joseph A. Gentiluomo. The inherent disadvantages of the underground type of apparatus is that they are generally stationary in design, have many moving parts, are relatively expensive to build, install and maintain.
Prior art representing an above ground ball setter is found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,599,983 issued Aug. 17, 1971 to Raymond L. Melton. Melton's portable golf ball setter uses a funnel-like hopper for storing a plurality of golf balls as a supply for feeding the setting portion of the apparatus. Melton's funnel-like storage hopper has been found to be unreliable, in that the balls have a tendency to bind or jam periodically against themselves within the hopper, and consequently fail to dispense properly therefrom.
Melton uses a pivotally mounted ball delivery ramp to deliver a single ball onto a golf tee. The delivery ramp is structured with a counterweight designed to retract the ramp out of the way of the golfer's club swing after the ball is set. Melton's delivery ramp is so mounted on its carriage as to allow its dislocation in the event of an inadvertent conflict with an errant club swing. The disengagable delivery ramp is intended to help prevent accidental damage to the apparatus, however, Melton has placed his golf ball selector means, that which selects one ball at a time and prevents additional stored balls from entering the delivery ramp, on one end of his disengagable ball delivery ramp. If for whatever reason, the delivery ramp is dislocated from the base of the machine, whatever number of balls that are held in the machine, including all hopper-stored balls would be dumped out of the machine and onto the ground. The dislocation of Melton's delivery ramp would allow whatever number of balls left in the apparatus, which could be a substantial number, to be deposited on the ground immediately toward the feet of the golfer, this is of course assuming the balls did not jam in the funnel-like ball storage hopper. The dumping of a large number of golf balls at the golfer's feet would obviously create a safety hazard, a substantial liability risk, and expend the golfer's time and energy in retrieving and replacing the loose golf balls. The Melton golf ball setter also appears quite elongated, a shape and structure which, unless dismantled would require a substantial amount of floor space for storage of the unit in places such as closets and the like when not in use.